This invention relates to the use of agglomerated/freeze dried milk powder in beverage such as coffee and tea as an alternative to artificially made coffee whiteners and liquid milk.
The concept of using liquid milk in coffee and tea has been prevalent for over a hundred years.
The use of milk substitutes in powder form for coffee originated about 40 years ago. These milk substitutes made as xe2x80x9ccoffee-whitenersxe2x80x9d were formulated with corn syrup solids, hydrogenated oils (for fat), artificial coloring and preservatives. However, ironically nobody has applied the direct use of dry milk powder in coffee or tea.
There are several reasons for this:
1. Most milk powders are processed and dried through single stage spray dryers; with applications being limited to reconstituting; baking, use in confectionary and being used as additive to soup mixes, etc. A powder that is dried in a single stage spray dryer has limited solubility and tends to clump up if used in a vending machine or if it was directly used in a hot beverage.
2. The lack of knowledge and use of the xe2x80x9cAgglomeration Technologyxe2x80x9d that now enables the product to be more soluble has also been limited. Agglomeration of milk or other dry powder ingredients enables the products to be more soluble and more easily dispensable and free flowing. Most milk agglomerated to date has been used for drinking purposes, with occasional use as a source for making other beverage products, such as protein shakes, etc.
3. The agglomeration process is also expensive and the equipment investment is substantial. This high costs has reduced the availability of the process and therefore has limited new innovation and applications of this technology.
Dry Milk Powder, agglomerated or otherwise as presently available in Bulk or consumer packaging is used primarily for reconstitution, baking, mixing or confectionary needs. No application has been developed or used for purposes of using the milk powder 100% directly in vending machines for beverage purposes.
The removal of water from milk can result in various dairy ingredients, from condensed milk, to cream, to butter, to whole milk and skim powder. Also, the removal of water from milk offers the manufacturer significant reduction in volume (about 87% of all milk is water), which not only saves in handling and transportation costs but extends the life of the products as much as 18 months, when packaged appropriately.
Over the years as the technology of evaporating and spray drying has evolved from transforming liquid ingredients into a dry powdered form or particle form, so have the applications of using these products.
It is not only milk that is spray dried, but hundreds of other products are also spray dried including eggs; ice cream mixes; coffee whiteners; soy powders and various fruits and vegetables.
The inventor has recognized the advantages of this dry powder technology; particularly where it pertains to milk and the subsequent use of xe2x80x9cagglomeration or instantization technologyxe2x80x9d to enable the dry powdered product to be more soluble and easily dispersible, so that it may be applied in beverages such as coffee and tea as a substitute for liquid milk and non-dairy whiteners.
To accomplish the invention, dry milk powder is obtained from whole milk or skim milk. To obtain skim milk powder, the whole milk is first separated to take out the fat (cream). It is then pasteurized and pumped to an evaporator to remove the water, which condenses the milk to 40% to 50% solids.
From there it is pumped to a spray dryer, where the remaining water is dried (ideal moisture of 2.8% to 3.5%) and the product is dried to powder form.
In order to achieve the right solubility and uniform particle size to mix in beverages such as coffee and tea without lumping or floating the milk needs to be further processed, such as in a two stage dryer or a separate agglomerator.
In this second drying chamber (known as a fluid bed system or agglomerator) air volumes, moisture, and temperatures can be controlled to achieve the desirable composition and functional properties of the powder.
This second stage of drying is called xe2x80x9cagglomerationxe2x80x9d or xe2x80x9cinstantizingxe2x80x9d of the powders. Agglomeration reduces powder surface area, and provides an open, heavier structure which allows for more even hydration. An agglomerated product offers better and faster dispersion when it is introduced into beverages.
When applied through this production process, using controlled air volumes, moisture and temperatures one is able to achieve a product that when mixed with water dissolves essentially instantly. It is this use of the agglomeration technology when applied to milk that enables the dry milk powder to not only be easily reconstituted for drinking purposes, but can be marketed as xe2x80x9cReal Milkxe2x80x9d for the use in beverage and vending purposes. There remains no lumping or floating of product versus if it was only spray dried in a single system. It is also a much more free flowing product that does not bridge or cake when dispensed through automatic vending machines.
The inventor has further identified that non fat dry milk powder when manufactured and agglomerated should have a particle bulk density between 0.25 g/cc and 0.34 g/cc; with ideal initial bulk density of 0.28 g/cc; combined with the other controlled factors it is most easily dispersible and free flowing for purposes of adding to a hot beverage whether through a vending machine or directly.
The final product ideally should have moisture ratio of between 2.8% to 3.5%, and scorched particles mass between 7.5 mg and 15.0 mg. A higher scorched particle mass will result in floaters in the beverage and like lumping will be considered adversely by the consumer.
Therefore, a main objective of this invention is to introduce an ideally manufactured agglomerated milk powder that is easily soluble and dispersible for use in automatic vending machines and applicable as an alternative to liquid milk and non dairy powders for use in hot beverages.
These and other objects and features of the invention will be more readily understood from a consideration of the following detailed description, taken with the accompanying drawings, in which corresponding parts are indicated by corresponding numerals.